WPTI
 | This article needs to be updated. (January 2010) |
 | |
| Broadcast area | Piedmont Triad (Greensboro - Winston-Salem - High Point) |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 94.5 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 94.5 WPTI |
| Programming | |
| Format | Talk radio |
| Network | Fox News Radio |
| Affiliations | Compass Media Networks Premiere Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WMAG, WMKS, WTQR, WVBZ | |
| History | |
First air date | March 20, 1949 (as WLOE-FM) |
Former call signs | WLOE-FM (1949-1968) WEAF (1968-1980) WSRQ (1980-1984) WWWI (1984–1986) WKLM (1986-1987) WWMY (1987-1991) WMKG (1991–1992) WNEU (1992–1994) WXRA (1994–2001) WWCC (2001–2003) WGBT (2003–2009) |
Call sign meaning | W Piedmont Triad International (name of the airport) |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 55754 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 299 meters (981 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 36°20′48″N 79°54′30″W / 36.34667°N 79.90833°W |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 945wpti.iheart.com |
WPTI (94.5 FM) is a commercial radio station, owned by iHeartMedia, licensed to Eden, North Carolina, and serving the Piedmont Triad, including the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point media market. The station broadcasts a talk radio format; its studios and offices are located on Pai Park near Interstate 40 in Greensboro.
WPTI has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts, the current maximum for FM stations. The signal provides at least secondary coverage from the southern suburbs of Roanoke to the western suburbs of Raleigh-Durham. The transmitter is located further north than most of the major Triad stations, allowing much of Southside Virginia (Martinsville, Danville) to get a city-grade signal. The tower is on Lowe Road in Madison.[1] WPTI broadcasts using HD Radio technology and formerly carried the iHeartRadio replay channel of the syndicated music show "On the Move with Enrique Santos", heard mostly on Top 40 stations, on its HD-2 digital subchannel. The HD-2 subchannel has since been turned off.
Programming
Weekdays on WPTI begin with a local news and information show hosted by K.C. O'Dea. The rest of the weekday schedule is made up of nationally syndicated talk shows, most of them from co-owned Premiere Networks: Glenn Beck, Clay Travis & Buck Sexton, Sean Hannity, Dave Ramsey, Jesse Kelly, "Coast to Coast AM with George Noory" and "This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal."
Shows on money, health and technology are heard weekends, some of which are paid brokered programming. Weekend programs include "The Weekend with Michael Brown," Ben Ferguson, "Leo Laporte: The Tech Guy," "Sunday Night Live with Bill Cunningham" and "Somewhere in Time with Art Bell." WPTI is the Triad's FM affiliate of the Tar Heel Sports Network, which broadcasts University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Tar Heels football and basketball games. National news from Fox News Radio is heard at the beginning of most hours.
History
Beautiful Music and Country
On March 20, 1949, the station first signed on the air. The original call sign was WLOE-FM, simulcast with its AM sister station 1490 WLOE. In 1968 the station switched call letters to WEAF as a beautiful music outlet, programmed separately from the AM station. WEAF played quarter hour sweeps of mostly instrumental cover versions of popular songs as well as Broadway and Hollywood show tunes. It later took the call letters WSRQ.
In 1984, the station increased power to 100,000 watts, relocated its studios to Greensboro, and switched to country music as WWWI "I-95," competing against the market's entrenched and top-rated country outlet, WTQR. Later the name was changed to "I-94.5"[citation needed] to help listeners more easily find the station during the time that digital tuners were replacing traditional analog receivers.
In 1986 the call letters were switched to WKLM "Classy 94.5" when the station returned to beautiful music.[2] Later the name changed to WWMY "My 94.5", though the format remained the same.[3]
Soft AC and Country
WWMY switched to Soft Adult Contemporary music in 1990, later changing to the new call letters WMKG and the name "Magic Lite" when WMAG began providing the station's programming.
In 1992, WMKG became WNEU "New Country 94.5", later changing its name to "Cat Country".[4][5]
Alternative Rock, Top 40 and Regional Mexican
The purchase of WNEU by Radio Equity Partners was announced in July 1994 and it was believed the station would become the "rocking country cousin" to WTQR.[6] On September 22, 1994, the station became WXRA "94.5 the Rock Alternative", playing modern rock[7][8] from the 80s and 90s for listeners 18 to 34.[6] Later in the 90s, the station began playing a mix of old and new rock and called itself "The Rock Station". Around New Year's Day, 2001, WXRA's format moved to 100.3 FM, with 94.5 FM becoming WWCC, a classic-leaning country music station. Ratings for this format were poor. On February 24, 2003, WWCC became WGBT, and flipped to a Rhythmic Top 40 format as "94.5 The Beat."[9]
On February 16, 2006, at 5 p.m., after playing "Don't Forget About Us" by Mariah Carey, WGBT switched to a Spanish-language classic hits format as "La Preciosa."[10] The station played Regional Mexican music from the 70s, 80s and 90s. As such, WGBT became The Triad's first FM Spanish-language radio station (and the second in North Carolina). This made the fourth distinctly different radio format in five years to be broadcast on the 94.5 frequency in the Greensboro market.
Talk Radio
At the end of 2009, the Curtis Media Group announced that its WSJS/WSML news talk simulcast would no longer carry The Rush Limbaugh Show.[11][12] On December 31, 2009, WGBT ended its Regional Mexican format, becoming talk station "Rush Radio 94.5" under the new call sign WPTI. The station aired weekend-long continuous replays of The Rush Limbaugh Week in Review through New Year's weekend. The Glenn Beck Program and a local show called The Morning Rush hosted by Bill Flynn and Pamela Furr debuted January 4.[13] On July 26, 2010, WPTI added the Sean Hannity Show to its schedule.
Following controversial comments made by Rush Limbaugh regarding Sandra Fluke, WPTI was asked by the university not to promote the Tar Heel Sports Network during The Rush Limbaugh Show.[14]
In November 2010, the station canceled The Morning Rush with Flynn and Pamela Furr (although Furr continued anchoring news for both WPTI and WRDU). After Christmas 2010, Dmitri Vassilaros began hosting the morning show.[15] In 2011, WPTI replaced Vassilaros with K.C. O'Dea.[16]
On May 24, 2013, WPTI dropped its "Rush Radio 94.5" branding, switching to "94.5 WPTI".[17] Limbaugh died of lung cancer in February 2021. WPTI began airing his replacement, Clay Travis & Buck Sexton, that June.
References
- ^ Radio-Locator.com/WPTI
- ^ Jeff Borden, "The Readers Write: "'Beautiful Music' Listeners Find Ways to Fill Void After WZXI Format Switch," The Charlotte Observer, April 14, 1986.
- ^ Bradley Johnson, "Aiming for an Audience," Greensboro News & Record, July 20, 1987.
- ^ Sutter, Mark (1991-08-16). "Triad Radio Stations Plan Marketing Staff Mergers". Greensboro News & Record.
- ^ Johnson, Maria C. (1993-05-20). "Radio Stations Fighting for Fans". Greensboro News & Record.
- ^ a b Sprouse, Catherine (1994-09-22). "Rock 'n a hard place". Triad Business News. p. 1.
- ^ Folk, Mark (1994-09-23). "Ex-Country Station Ready to Rock 'N' Roll". Greensboro News & Record.
- ^ "Greensboro's Country WNEU Goes Rock" (PDF). 1994-09-30. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ "WWCC/Greensboro Flips To CHR/Rhythmic" (PDF). 2003-02-28. p. 16. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ "94.5 FM Becomes La Preciosa". WXII12. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
- ^ Rush Radio 94.5
- ^ "Conservative Talkers Moving To FM In Triad". wxii.com. 2009-11-02. Retrieved 2009-11-03.
- ^ Rowe, Jeri (2010-01-07). "Radio host shifts to the right with a new station". News & Record. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
- ^ Cain, Brooke (2012-03-22). "UNC distances itself from Rush Limbaugh". News & Observer. Retrieved 2012-03-22.
- ^ "Rush Radio Hires New Morning Show Host". WGHP. 2010-12-10. Retrieved 2011-01-25.
- ^ "Ask SAM: Straight Answers". Winston-Salem Journal. 2011-09-01. Retrieved 2011-09-02.
- ^ "Less Rush for WPTI Greensboro". 24 May 2013.
External links
- WPTI in the FCC FM station database
- WPTI in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- FCC History Cards (covering 1949-1981 as WLOE-FM / WEAF / WSRQ)